While teachers planning to enter elementary schools or high schools
are required to take preparation courses that specifically address the
development of their would-be charges, middle school teacher-candidates
are often lumped in with other grades, the paper from the National
Middle Schools Association observes.

"We haven't gotten targeted and focused on what is unique about
teaching at the middle," said Sue Swaim, the executive director of the
association, which is based in Westerville, Ohio.

For example, a teacher-candidate who wants to go into middle school
may be put in a preparation program geared to grades K-8 or 7-12, Ms.
Swaim said. ("An
Incomplete Education," Oct. 4, 2000.)

The document, "This We Believe," consists of an updated list of 14
points the group has deemed essential for fostering a high-quality
middle school, and it comes at a time when many observers say middle
schools are in desperate need of improvement.

The association's recommendations were first made in 1982, but
because middle schools are constantly facing new challenges, the
statement needs to updated periodically, Ms. Swaim said.

A new element added in this round of revisions specifically
addresses the need for high-caliber leaders in middle schools.

Such components are now backed up by recent research conducted at
the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, according to Deborah A.
Kasak, the executive director of the Newton, Mass.-based National Forum
to Accelerate Middle-Grades Reform.

"There is a good correlation," she said, between the implementation
of the kinds of practices found in the position paper and an increase
in student achievement.

Not Magic

To be successful, middle schools must implement all the
recommendations, not simply pick and choose, Ms. Swaim said.

"If you treat it like a checklist, we're not going to get where we
want to be," she said. "There is no magic button."

Components of a well-regarded middle school, according to the middle
school association, are:

Educators who value working with young adolescents and are
prepared to do so;

Courageous, collaborative leadership;

A shared vision that guides decisions;

An inviting, supportive, and safe environment;

High expectations for every member of the learning
community;

Students and teachers engaged in active learning;

An adult advocate for every student;

School-initiated family and community partnerships;

Curriculum that is relevant, challenging, integrative, and
exploratory;

Multiple learning and teaching approaches that respond to
diversity within the student population;

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